Half Bottle: Chateau Les Ormes de Pez 2019

St Estephe Cru Bourgeois Supérieur

Wonderfully well-balanced and complex, with a rich aromatic background and an incredibly silky texture.

Chateau Les Ormes de Pez takes its name from the village of Pez near St Estèphe, as do the other nearby cru bourgeois properties of de Pez and La Tour de Pez. Les Ormes translates as elms, and betrays the presence of a copse of these trees, long since disappeared, near the chateau.

The vineyards are located in two plots north and south of the village of St Estèphe, on the sand and gravel that is typical of the commune. There are 33 hectares in all, with 70% of the vines Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 20% Merlot. They have an average age between 25 and 30 years, and are planted at a density of 9000 vines/ha. The harvested fruit is destemmed and then vinification of destemmed grapes takes place in a restored stable, extensively renovated in the 1993, using stainless steel and temperature control. Malolactic occurs in vat, and the wine then sees fifteen months in second-hand barrels from Lynch-Bages, with several rackings. Barrels aren't alone in their travels between Lynch-Bages and Ormes de Pez, the Lynch Bages winemaking team, led by Daniel Llose, also looks after Les Ormes de Pez. The wine is fined and filtered before bottling. The result is Chateau Les Ormes de Pez, a firm, robust wine typical of its commune which offers good value.